Street Children

1. Street Children Submitted by Raimonda Sluckaite Mykolas Romeris University Faculty of social policy

2. Layout • Definition • Problems in the street • Categories of children(1) • Categories of children(2) • Types of street children (UNICEF) • Street children in Lithuania • Data on street children in Lithuania • Literature

3. The term street children refers to children for whom the street more than their family has become their real home. It includes children who might not necessarily be homeless or without families, but who live in situations where there is no protection, supervision, or direction from responsible adults. - Human Rights Watch

4. Problems in the street • poverty, • lack of education, • AIDS, • prostitution, • all kinds of abuse, • drugs, • alcohol, • murders.

5. UNICEF divides street children into two main categories: 1. Children on the street are those engaged in some kind of economic activity ranging from begging to vending. Because of the economic fragility of the family, these children may eventually opt for a permanent life on the streets.

6. 2. Children of the street actually live on the street (or outside of a normal family environment). Family ties may exist but are tenuous and are maintained only casually or occasionally.

7. Other distribution of street children: • Children of the street • Children in the street.

8. UNICEF has defined three types of street children • Street Living Children: children who ran away from their families and live alone on the streets. • Street Working Children: children who spend most of their time on the streets, fending for themselves, but returning home on a regular basis. • Children from Street Families: children who live on the streets with their families.

9. Lithuanian Street Children Football Federation (LSCFF) • To protect children’s rights • To implement national crime prevention program • To organize cultural and educational work • To give an opportunity for children to spend free-time purposefully • To popularize football in the country • To create technical-material background, which would let children play football.

10. Data in Lithuania: • In the year 1998 only 79% of children stayed in normal typical families; • 81 % of respondents used any form of drugs (almost all boys); • Girls have more oftenexperienced sexual abuse than boys; • These children do start very early sexual life; • These children do show often criminal behavior ; • About 50% of girls and 30% of boys tried to commit a suicide…

11. The number of children living independently in the streets totals between 100 million and 150 million worldwide, and it is forecasted that by 2020 the number will increase to 800 million.

12. Literature: • www.children.lt • www.unicef.lt • www.mexico-child-link.org • www.unesco.org